Harold and his wife, Linda, from Olathe, Kansas, make up the Hot Meat Smokers team. The Smokers have been working their way through competitive barbecue events for the past 12 years.

Colston describes the Bikes, Blues and BBQ event as going “really well.” And attributes some of his success to some changes he has made recently in his hardware.

“Earlier this year, I installed a BBQ Guru system on my cooker. That helps my firebox and has helped me regulate my temperatures. And over the last 2 or 3 contests I’ve finally got it all figured out!”

Colston figured out the Bikes, Blues and BBQ event to the tune of 3rd place in chicken, 2nd place in ribs, 6th place in pork and 9th place in brisket which all added up to a Grand Championship.

“Chicken and Ribs have been my strong points. They’ve just been doing really well,” states Colston of his weekend.

Harold has also had a good year when it comes to Kingsford.

“At Lenexa this year, “ describes Colston, “they actually handed out some of the Kingsford charcoal. That’s how I got started on the Kingsford Competition briquettes! Now that I’ve tried it, I really like it.”

“So when coming down to Arkansas, I wanted to make sure I filled out the form for the Kingsford Points Chase. When I can, I’ll always compete in the Kingsford events.”

There’s no real secret to his magic states Colston. “For the majority of the barbecue cookers out there we just have a basic way we put it on the cooker, and then it reaches a temperature, I wrap it a bit and then eventually we’ll serve!”

Colston offers some advice to anyone who may be looking for that small suggestion to put themselves over the top, when he says, “the best tip I could give anybody is, once you think your meat is done… let it rest a bit. It keeps all the moisture in.”

But don’t let Colston’s minimalist approach fool you, the Hot Meat Smokers aren’t a team to be underestimated. With the Kingsford Points Chase win and Grand Championship in Fayetteville, the Hot Meat Smokers certainly aren’t going to be overlooked by their competition anytime soon!